THE PARABLE OF THE YOUNG MAN AND THE TAILOR
1 Corinthians 11
3But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head
of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. 4Every man praying or
prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. 5But every woman
that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for
that is even all one as if she were shaven. 6For if the woman be not covered,
let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven,
let her be covered. 7For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as
he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. 8For
the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. 9Neither was the man
created for the woman; but the woman for the man. 10For this cause ought the
woman to have power on her head because of the angels. 11Nevertheless neither is
the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. 12For
as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things
of God.
Psalm 127
1 Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the
LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.
2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of
sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.
3 Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his
reward.
4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.
5 Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed,
but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
There once was a young man who thought it time in his life to have a new suit of
clothes. While passing the shop of a tailor a display in the window caught his
attention. It was quite a handsome suit and he thought it well to his liking.
So, the young man went into the shop to speak to the tailor.
“I am desiring a new suit of clothes and the display in your window has caught
my eye. What must I do to acquire such a fine suit of clothing?” he asked.
“A fine suit it is,” said the tailor, “and I am not eager to give it up,
certainly to just anyone who comes along desiring to have it. Many hours of
labor and love went into the making of this beautiful suit. It is very close to
my heart. But you seem a nice young man and well mannered. I want my suit to be
cherished and kept with great care so that it always displays my handiwork. Will
you promise and vow to me that you will always care for the suit, protect it,
cherish its value and never discard it?”
“O, yes sir!” cried the young man. “I would be so proud to have it and wear it.
May I have it today?” he asked.
“No,” said the tailor. “You need to consider the responsibility of having such a
fine suit of clothes. It will require that you have a place to closet the suit,
bare the expense to keep it clean and repair it if need be. You must be tender
with it and love it as your own skin. You must go until the appointed day and
consider these things. When you are ready to make your vow, then I will place
the suit in your care.”
The young man agreed and left the tailor’s shop with joy and excitement in his
heart. Each day he looked forward to the appointed time when the new suit would
be his. He went by the tailor’s shop often to gaze at the suit and dream of the
time when it would be his. He visited with the tailor and shared his desires and
hopes of life.
Finally, the appointed day came. Family and friends from all around gathered to
witness the young man wearing the new suit. The young man stood proudly and made
his vow in the presence of the tailor, his family and friends. He promised to
forsake all other suits and cherish this one until his death. Then the tailor
passed the suit over to the young man and he carried it into his house to be his
own.
In the days to follow, he was seen stepping so proudly as he wore the suit.
Folks admired him and many said what an enhancement the suit was to the young
man.
Over the years, accessories were added to this handsome lot. A hat, a pair of
gloves, a pair of fine shoes and a cane came one by one. Now the ensemble was
complete. The face of the young man gleamed as folks admired his wonderful
appearance, and the heart of it all was the suit of clothes.
But a dark day came when the young man was talking with another gentleman in a
suit. The gentleman’s suit was a bit contemporary, casually comfortable, and
these features seemed good to the young man, yet it was not a good fit for the
young man. Soon envy rose in his heart. Then his envy turned to covetousness. It
swelled so much in his heart that he forgot the vows he had made, the years of
service his suit had given him, and the joy which the hat, the gloves, the shoes
and the cane had brought him.
The young man stole the suit of the other gentleman and tossed aside his own
suit, hat, gloves, shoes and cane. The other gentleman had promised the same
tailor to keep his suit which had been made for him, but he had been robbed of
his opportunity for joy even though the intent of the other gentleman was to be
true to his vow.
Some folks were appalled and surprised that the young man could possibly give up
his beautiful clothes for another man’s suit. Others said, “Just follow your
heart. You have a right to be happy. You can not control what you like for
clothing.” Still others said, “A vow is a vow. It is not right for the young man
to forsake that for which he has pledged his sacred promise and treat the suit
the tailor made for him as if it were a rag to be discarded.”
Now, if you are upset with the treatment the young man gave to his wonderful
clothing and the betrayal of his vow to the tailor…..why is it any different
when a man forsakes his family and steals another man’s wife?